Top Five unsold players of the SA20 player auction

The inaugural player auction of the SA20 league saw a lot of players go under the hammer. One of them became the costliest player of the season. Talking about others, they went to six different teams which are owned by different team owners in the Indian T20 League. A total of five players were allowed to be signed before the auction.

Bifurcating this, three could be overseas, one uncapped and capped South Africa player were allowed to sign. After the auction, a maximum of 17 players were allowed to be signed by every team. After the auction, a lot of overseas and South African players were sold. On the other hand, some players weren't so lucky after all. These were high-profile players who went unsold in the auction

Five unsold players in the SA20 auction

Temba Bavuma (Image Credit: Twitter)

1. Temba Bavuma

Surprisingly, South Africa's white-ball skipper went unsold in the player auction. Since Bavuma has taken over the reins of the Proteas, the team has been doing well.

However, the teams weren't interested in his services. One reason could be his low strike rate in the shortest format of the game. The right-hander strikes a little more than 120 runs per hundred balls which is considered criminal in the format. 

Ross Taylor (Image Credit: Twitter)

2. Ross Taylor

The retired Kiwi cricketer has played in the Indian T20 League, Caribbean Premier League, England's T20 Blast, and for a few teams in the Australia domestic T20. The right-hander has a vast experience of 292 games including the T20I internationals.

However, the franchises are believed to be moving forward which is why he might have gone unsold. Also, not to forget, that he has retired from all forms of the game at the highest level which might also have gone against him. 

Dean Elgar (Image Credit: Twitter)

3 Dean Elgar

The Proteas Test skipper registered in the player auction was a surprise in itself. He has never played in the T20 leagues and mostly plays in his national domestic games. Also, he has played a few games for Surrey and Somerset.

Not surprisingly though, he went unsold. Talking about his T20 record, he has played 81 games and has a strike rate of 111.13. This could be a major reason for his to go unsold. 

Dinesh Chandimal (Image Credit: Twitter)

4. Dinesh Chandimal

The 2014 20-20 World cup winner was also registered for the player auction. Talking about his T20I record, he has a strike rate of just 103.60 which will never attract a T20 contract.

Also, his habit of being inconsistent over the years and not being part of the Sri Lanka setup on regular basis might have gone against him. He averages 19.66 in the format.

Carlos Braithwaite (Image Credit: Twitter)

5. Carlos Braithwaite

The 2016 20-20 World Cup hero didn't find any buyer. Over the years, he has played a lot of T20 leagues and recently played in The Hundred for the 2022 finalists, Manchester Originals.

Notably, his strike rate in T20Is and the league differs a lot. In international cricket, he strikes at 113.13 and in the leagues, has better numbers (136.24). This might be a reason for him going unsold.